His Name is Harry
by Cayti Leigh
Summary: Butterfly Effect.Vernon found baby Harry that morning and sent him to an orphanage. He grew up extremely protective of the younger boys, and now he has recived his Hogwarts letter. Dumbledore kept an eye on him as he grew, but Harry is highly independent.
1. Harry, His Name is Harry

On the morning of November first, Petunia Dursley had an awful case of the flu and simply couldn't get out of bed.

Most mornings, she would be up before her husband, but today Vernon Dursley was up first and would be doing all the chores and such that were typically her job. He'd taken a sick day to stay home and take care of her.

As he opened the door to put out the milk bottles, he caught sight of something that was highly abnormal, and oh, how he _loathed_** anything **that was abnormal.

Lying on the doorstep was an baby. It was sleeping and wrapped in blankets. Clutched in a small fist was a letter that was addressed to _The Dursleys_.

Vernon picked up the letter and opened it. He scanned through it and sneered. _How __**dare**__ they try to pawn off their little spawn on us?_ He knew just what to do with this… child.

He picked up the sleeping baby and walked towards the car. Luckily, it wasn't yet light out and no one was around to see him. He placed _it_ in the backseat and hurried into the kitchen. After pouring the the bottle of cough syrup down the drain, he wrote a note to Petunia.

_Petunia,_

_Went to get more cough syrup,_

_Love, Vernon_

He set the note on the counter next to the empty bottle and dashed back out to the car. He strapped the still-sleeping child more securely into the backseat and drove off.

Sometime later, he managed to find an orphanage. He parked and unbuckled the _thing_ from the backseat before going inside. He saw a lady walking by and tapped her on the shoulder. She tuned to him and he immediately put the child into her arms.

"What is…" she managed to ask before he turned around and walked away. "Wait! Sir!" She followed him and he ignored her. "Sir," He turned with a grim face once she had caught up to him.

"_What?_" He hissed.

"I just…" the woman seemed to falter, glancing down at the child. "What's his story? Does he at least have a name?"

Vernon looked down at the bundle in her arms with cruel eyes. "Found him on my doorstep."

He went to keep walking, but the woman stopped him with her next question. "And his name? Do you know it?" Her eyes were wide, and it looked as if she were close to tears.

Vernon looked down at the child, who was beginning to stir. His eyes appeared to soften momentarily before going back to their cold hard gaze. "Harry. His name is Harry." And with that he left the orphanage and went back home to care for his wife who, still asleep, was none the wiser on what he had done.

* * *

Albus Dumbledore sat in his office thinking about a certain Harry Potter. He'd dropped him at his relative's house the night before. Now, he was in a muggle orphanage in London.

To say Albus Dumbledore was disappointed in the Dursleys would be an understatement.

He felt terrible that the poor boy would grow up without knowing about his parents, but it was for the best. Until all the remaining Death Eaters had been securely locked away in Azkaban, he could never be safe in the wizarding world.

Of course, Dumbledore would have to keep a close eye on the child now, and interfere if things started to go for the worse. After all, he knew of another boy who had grown up in an orphanage who had turned out as dark as they could get.

Albus popped another lemon drop into his mouth and turned his thoughts to more pleasant things. There were celebrations going on all over Britain, and he would be expected to attend many of them.


	2. Their Protector

Harry blinked blearily awake for the second time that night. Someone was crying softly a few beds over.

He reached for his glasses and put them on. As he made his way to the crying child, he realized that it was Andrew.

Andrew was eight. He had come to the orphanage two years ago and still had nightmares about his parents.

"Andrew," Harry said in a calm voice. When he got no answer he placed a hand gently on the younger boy's shoulder. He gave a small start and looked up to see Harry.

"Budge over." Harry told him. Andrew moved so Harry could sit next to him. Harry wrapped a comforting arm around the boy and they just sat for a while. Andrew sniffled a bit as he slowly stopped crying.

After a few soundless minutes, Harry wondered if he might have gone back to sleep, but then he heard Andrew's quiet voice, horse from his crying. "I had another dream about them." He paused and Harry just waited for him to continue. "It was late, and they were fighting again. Dad hit mum a few too many times and she just left." He paused again, lost in his memory. "Then he came into my room. He was really angry and smelled like beer. He… He hit me around and I could taste blood." Andrew shut his eyes and rested his head against Harry's side. His voice grew tighter, holding back more tears. "Then mum came back, probably to save me, and he pulled out the gun." His voice cracked at the last word. He took a few staggering gasps.

Harry had heard this story many times before, and knew of its tragic ending. But no matter how many times he heard it, he would always be there to listen to and comfort the boy.

That was what Harry was. He would comfort them when they cried, and stand up for them when they were bullied. He was their protector; one of the oldest of them, though he didn't know his true age. He'd been dumped at the orphanage when he was just a baby, and that was nine and a half years ago. Since they'd guessed him to be about a year old then, he was around ten now.

Andrew had calmed to the point where he could talk again, "He was gone by the time the police got there." He had a sad, distant look in his eyes, and Harry knew what he was going to say next. "It… it was my fault. If she hadn't come back for me…"

Harry cut him off. "No." He stated firmly before continuing in a gentler tone. "Even though she did come back because of you, it was because she loved you. There was no way she couldn't." Harry looked the younger boy in the eyes. "The only person to blame is your father, never you."

Harry could see that the message was starting to sink in, but he knew Andrew still wasn't entirely convinced. "All you can do now is live your life. Learn lots of things, help lots of people, and be the person your mother would want you to be. That way, once you die, you'll be able to tell her all about it." Harry, though he had never gotten involved with church, was a strong believer of life after death.

"How can you be so sure? That I'll ever see her again…"

Harry looked at the smaller boy who was barely holding onto the shreds of his childhood innocence. "Because I just know. Like the warmth of the sun on your face, you can't see it exactly; only where it comes from, but you can feel its warmth. "

Andrew smiled, thinking of his mother. "Thanks Harry." He said softly. He snuggled up against Harry and soon his breathing became more even and Harry knew he had fallen asleep.

Harry gently tucked in the boy and moved back to his bed. As soon as his head hit the pillow, he heard whimpering from the other side of the room. It sounded like the newest boy, a five year old named Jake. Harry sighed and sat up. It was going to be a long night.

* * *

The boys were outside during recess. Most were playing a game of tag, enjoying the bit of freedom before they had to go back inside for school, but Harry was sitting off to the side, watching the others.

Harry saw a large boy come by followed by several others. They stopped in front of Andrew and Harry stood up. He quickly made his way across the playground and stood beside Andrew, who was cowering in fear. "Hello." Harry said coldly. If there was one thing Harry hated, it was bullies who picked on those that were less powerful than them.

"Who're you?" asked the large boy who was clearly the leader of the rest. His tone made him sound highly stupid, and Harry knew the boy wasn't very bright.

"Harry. My name is Harry." He said, narrowing his eyes. "And you must be new here; otherwise you would have known that bullies aren't tolerated by me."

The boys behind him all laughed at this. It must have been a funny sight, a scrawny little boy threatening one who was over four times his size, if still the same age, but the others on the playground who had stopped to watch knew Harry's threats weren't empty.

"And what are you gonna do about it?" taunted the large boy in the middle. The boys behind him all chorused their taunts as well.

"Hit him hard!"

"Teach him some respect!"

"You tell him Big D!"

"I assume that 'Big D' is a nickname for something else?" Harry said. He spoke with a formal tone, something he always did when confronting a bully. It unnerved them.

"Name's Dudley Dursley," the large leader said. "What's your surname?" he asked in a gruff voice.

"I don't have one. I'm Harry, just Harry." He replied, waiting for the inevitable taunts that followed.

"Just Harry?"

"Harry No-Name!"

"Hahahaa!"

Harry thought the boys looked a bit like monkeys. He ignored the words that attempted to hurt him and focused on the matter at hand. "Well, Dudley, I think it would be in your best interest to leave those smaller than you alone."

"Oh, yeah?" Dudley replied in a stupidly. He couldn't think of anything else to say so he swung back his fist to aim at the smaller of the two boys in front of him. Harry expertly stepping in front of Andrew and raised a hand, palm facing Dudley as if to grab his fist. Dudley's fist stopped a centameter before Harry's hand when it hit a barrier. There was a crack and Dudley howled in pain.

"I warned you to leave those smaller than you alone." Harry said his voice crackling power.

Dudley cradled his hand and whimpered a bit. Harry thought he was close to pissing himself.

"I think it best," Harry said, reverting back to his formal tone. "To forget this ever happened. You hit your hand after getting angry and punching a tree. You will not harm or bully another for the rest of your time spent at our school."

Dudley nodded. His face showed his flickering emotions easily: Scared, furious, terrified, confused, fearful, angry, and scared again. He got up quickly and ran away with his friends following close behind.

Harry turned to Andrew. "Are you ok?" He asked gently.

"I'm fine now, thanks to you." He answered with a weak smile.

Harry smiled back. "I'm always here to help."

* * *

Albus Dumbledore stood hidden under the invisibility cloak watching the scene unfold. He was so proud of Harry at that moment, as he always was when he came to check up on the boy.

He watched as Harry stepped in front of the younger boy and he knew that Harry's parents would be proud of him as well.

Dumbledore chuckled to himself when he realized the irony of which Harry was protecting the boy from. It was his cousin. Harry had met Dudley Dursley, son of Vernon and Petunia Dursley, and was standing up against him.

Dumbledore watched until he saw Dudley run away in fear and Harry begin to comfort the younger boy before he decided that he had seen enough. Dumbledore turned and disapparated with a pop.

* * *

Summer break came quickly and on a quiet day in mid-July Harry was sitting outside with the other children. A few were playing games, but most, like Harry, were simply sitting in the sun enjoying the nice weather.

One of the children pointed towards the sky. A dark spot could be seen, growing bigger. The closer it got, the more attention it drew. Harry looked up to see what was causing all the children to be so excited. Circling above and coming down closer and closer to the ground, was an owl.

Harry knew owls were nocturnal creatures, and shouldn't be out in the daytime, but he shrugged it off and watched the fascinated faces of the younger boys. He smiled, taking in their childish wonder. So few of the boys in the orphanages could still be considered children; they'd seen too much and lived through too many hardships to retain much of the trusting childish innocence. Harry loved seeing them act like the children they should be allowed to be.

Watching the excited faces of the other children, Harry didn't see that the owl they'd been watching was slowly descending down to him until it landed in front of him, clutching a letter in its beak.

Harry stared at it, confused. It hopped closer and set the letter in his lap before flying away and perching itself in a nearby tree.

Harry just stared dumbly at the letter in his lap. He picked it up and turned it over.

_Harry_

_The Backyard_

_Boy's Home for Orphans_

_London_

Harry made no move to open it. He'd never gotten any mail before, and was still numb with shock.

A six year old name Kyle nudged his arm. "Open it." He whispered.

Harry turned over the envelope. He broke the wax seal and pulled out the heavy parchment inside. He unfolded it and read out loud for the other boys to hear.

"HOGWARTS SCHOOL  
of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY

Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore  
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,  
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)

Dear Harry,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.  
Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall  
Deputy Headmistress"

Harry paused as he flipped to the next page.

"HOGWARTS SCHOOL  
of WHICHCRAFT and WIZARDRY

UNIFORM  
First-year students will require:  
sets of plain work robes (black)  
plain pointed hat (black) for day wear  
pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)  
winter cloak (black, with silver fastenings)  
Please note that all pupil's clothes should carry name tags.

COURSE BOOKS  
All students should have a copy of each of the following:

The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1)  
by Miranda Goshawk

A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot

Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling

A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration by Emeric Switch

One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi  
by Phyllida Spore

Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them  
by Newt Scamander

The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection  
by Quentin Trimble

OTHER EQUIPMENT

1 wand  
1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)  
1 set glass or crystal phials  
1 telescope  
1 set brass scales

Students may also bring and owl OR a cat OR a toad.

PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS"

There was silence as everyone realized what he had just read. Eager little Kyle was the first to speak. "Does this mean you're a wizard, Harry?" He asked excitedly.

That comment started a rush of questions and excited babble before Harry yelled, "Quiet!" Everyone looked at him, waiting for him to speak. "We don't even know if this is real." Harry voice was soft and disbelieving.

"Of course it's real! It was sent with an owl! This means magic is real! I knew it!" said Aaron, a loud nine-year-old.

"I don't know… even if it _is_ real, how do we know we can trust these people?" Harry countered.

"Well, you have to try!" Aaron told him, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. The other boys were all nodding along with him.

"I dunno… I wouldn't be able to buy any of this stuff… and I don't even have paper to write back! Mrs. Elmand would be furious if I took any from my school notebook."

"I can give you paper." Piped up a small boy named Cameron.

"And we can pool our money for the supplies!" said Kyle. The others all nodded, their faces shining with that childish excitement Harry so loved. How could he deny them this?

"I suppose…" Harry said, furrowing his brow trying to calculate exactly how they could go about getting this stuff. "But where would we even find all the supplies?"

It was Andrew that replied next, "The letter says you need black robes, so just look for people in robes and follow them! We have paper rout tomorrow, if we do it real quickly, we'll have time to look around London for other wizards!"

Harry wasn't sure if that would work, but he couldn't crush the excitement on his face by saying no. "Alright." He said, smiling slightly. "It's worth a try." The other boys all cheered around him. "But no one can tell any of the adults!"

"We won't." Andrew said. "It's not like they would believe us anyway."

Later that night, the rest of the boys were sleeping and Harry was still lying awake in bed. He thought of the letter that was tucked underneath his thin mattress. It wasn't likely that he would be able to go to such a school, even if it was real, after all he didn't have the money or the means to get himself there. But he couldn't help but wonder if the people at this school might know where he came from. Maybe they could tell him who his parents were.

Maybe they knew his last name.

Although he had long ago come to peace with his lack of an identity—save for a simple first name—he was still extremely curious.

But just what was he getting himself into?

* * *

-Annoying Note-

I'm taking a vote as to where Harry gets sorted at Hogwarts.

Each review is it's own vote!

Tell me in a review your ideas!

I'm open to having Harry make his own house or refuse to be sorted claiming he 'doesn't like labels'.

What do you think?

l

l

V


	3. Welcome to Diagon Ally

Dumbledore paced his office. He was debating what to do about Harry James Potter. He had never intended to let him live in the orphanage for this long, but after seeing the influences of the older boy's stories and a few teachers he'd had, he decided it was best the boy stay there. Harry had become wise beyond his years, and the closest thing the other boys had to a father figure (surprisingly even to the older boys).

Through the many times Dumbledore had checked up on him, he saw that Harry had a strong sence of what was right, so he let him be. Now it was time to introduce him to the magical world...

Does he send someone, like with muggleborn students? Or perhaps he could send a detailed letter… No, thats no way to introduce him to his past.

No matter what he did, he knew he didn't want to shock the boy with too much information, but no matter what he thought to do, he couldn't find a way to show him the magical world gently.

Unless…

He could send him a regular letter, and see how he reacts. He'd edit it so it didn't show the boy's surname (that's one subject that would better be explained in person), and then wait for a reply. If he didn't get a reply, he could send Hagrid or go himself to explain the magical world more to him.

Dumbledore sat down in his chair and popped a lemon drop into his mouth.

He could tell Mr. Harry Potter was going to be _very_ interesting.

* * *

Harry woke early, having had a rare full night's sleep where he wasn't awoken by any of the other children. He knew it was because they were all having good dreams about the possibilities of a magical world.

Harry slipped out of bed, changed into his clothes, and pulled on his trainers. He tip-toed over to Andrew's bed and gently shook him awake. "Paper route" he whispered.

"Five more minutes…" mumbled Andrew.

Harry smiled. "Then running around London looking for Wizards and Witches."

Andrew sat up with a huge grin stretched across his face. He jumped out of bed, stumbling slightly as he rushed to get dressed. Harry laughed at his eagerness and moved to the bed nearest the door. He gently shook awake the boy and said, "Code 3." The boy blinked and rubbed his eyes to rid them of sleep before reaching out to the boy next to him and doing the same.

"Code 3," was mumbled from bed to bed until each of the twenty or so boys in the room were awake. The code system had been established years ago by a group of boys living there. One of the younger of them had wanted to play spies, and the silly codes they had used had become a permanent secret that had been passed on whenever anyone new came.

'Code 3' was meant to be a temporary wake up call. Once all the boys were awake, Harry whispered out what he wanted to tell them.

"Ok, everybody, Andrew and I are going out now to do our paper route. We're way earlier than we normally leave, so we'll have plenty of time to search around London for any people wearing those robe things."

"Here," said Kyle, he dug under his mattress and brought out an old sock. The coins inside jingled as he moved. "You have to take all the money to get your supplies and stuff."

Murmurs of agreement went around the room as each boy pulled out the little bit of money that they had. Harry felt his eyes water at how much they all cared for him, but he knew he could never take their money. "Thanks mates, but you need to keep that for now." He told them. "I appreciate how much you're all willing to give up to get me to this school of magic, but we still have to find out if it's real, let alone if I'll be able to find or afford it."

The boys looked a bit put-out, and Harry hated that he was crushing their fun. "Cheer up, mates, as soon as we find a wizard we'll be able to come back and tell you all about it." The rest of the boys seemed to cheer up a bit as they tucked away their money. Harry hoped for the sake of the other's hopes that this wasn't just some cruel trick. He bid them all goodbye as he and Andrew left the room and snuck out the front door with their papers to deliver.

It was early, not yet five. The streets were deserted except for Harry and Andrew, who were jogging to get to the place where their paper route started. After rushing through their delivery, it was nearly seven o'clock and the city was starting to awaken. People had just begun to walk around when Harry and Andrew sat on a bench people watching.

They had been sitting for about fifteen minutes when they saw the first sign of something odd. A grumpy looking man was walking by. He was wearing dark blue robes and clutching a stick. Andrew pointed excitedly. "Look, Harry, look! That must be a _wand_!" Harry too was aprehensive to get excited. Could they really be this lucky? Could they have already spotted a wizard?

They got up to follow the man. A few blocks later he headed into a tiny old pub that had a sign proclaiming it to be the "Leaky Cauldron".

"Hey, where'd he go?" asked Andrew furiously.

"What do you mean? He went right into that pub." Harry said. He looked down at Andrew in confusion.

"No, he just disappeared, into thin air!"

"Oh, come on." Harry grabbed Andrew by the hand. "It's just up there."

As they got closer to the entrance, Andrew began to get distracted by the oddest of things. "Oh, look at that cloud." Andrew said, pulling away from Harry and trying to go in the opposite direction.

Harry looked down and saw that Andrew's blue eyes were clouded over. "What the…?" Harry asked, refusing to let go of Andrew. He pulled him harder toward the pub until they were almost at the door.

"What an excellent piece of sidewalk." Andrew said in a slightly dreamy voice. Harry gave one last tug and they were through the door.

Andrew shook his head as if to clear it and Harry saw that his eyes were a clear blue once again. "What on Earth just happened?" Andrew asked quietly.

Harry was about to answer when a voice interrupted him. "You must be a muggle. That was the muggle repelling charms." It was the same man they'd followed in. He pulled out a stick that Harry assumed to be a wand and pointed it at them. "I'm sorry I have to do this, but I'm an Auror and it is part of my job to perform a memory charm if something like this happens." The man gave a weak smile before turning his wand to face Andrew and saying "_Obliviate!_"

Harry grabbed Andrew's wrist and stepped in front of him with his other hand out, ready to either stop whatever would happen or take the hit for him. He watched as a beam of blueish-green light formed out of the man's wand and headed straight for his outstretched palm. The spell wasn't able to reach it though, as it encountered the invisable shield. Harry's knees nearly buckled in the effort of keeping it up, but he managed to until the spell fizzled out and he let his hand fall.

The man looked highly confused. He thought them to be everyday muggle boys who had stumbled into the wrong pub, but he was apparently mistaken.

"C'mon, Andrew," Harry said in a hard voice. "I think we should leave." Harry would normally stay to stand up for Andrew and himself, but he didn't know how many more of the lights his protective shield could take.

He turned to go but the man's voice stopped him. "Wait! I didn't mean to… I thought you were muggles!"

Harry turned to him and spoke with more confidence than he had, "Next time you would do well to confirm your suspicions before acting upon them." Although he had no idea what a muggle was, he knew that a strong voice would make the man back down sooner.

The man ducked his head, rather embarrassed to be told off by a ten year old. "I really am sorry… My name is John Dawlish, is there anything I can do to make it up to you both?"

Harry narrowed his eyes in suspicion. Would this man try to hurt them again? Was going with him and possibly finding out more about Hogwarts worth the possibility of Andrew getting hurt by him?

Just as Harry was telling himself that was a definite '_No_' Andrew spoke up. "Well, Mr. Dawlish, you could start by telling us how to get to Hogwarts!" He had an eager and hopeful look on his face that Harry couldn't help but to smile at.

The man gave him an odd look before replying. "You take the train, of course. Have you replied to your letter yet?" Harry shook his head no. "Well, once you do that the school will send you your train ticket." The man paused for a moment before continuing with a smile. "How about I buy you boys some ice cream? I've got to be to work soon, but I have time for a short stop."

Both boys looked at each other, faces alight with excitement. They turned to the man and nodded. The man led them through the pub to a wall which he tapped with his wand and it melted away to show the most amazing sight either boy had ever seen.

"Welcome, boys, to Diagon Ally." The man smiled at their amazed faces. Their heads whipped all around, trying to see everything at once. "Come along, now. I've only a few minutes to spare before I have to leave." They followed him numbly, their eyes where wide as they looked at all the shops and people.

The man led him to a shop called Florean Fortscue's Ice Cream Parlor he gave each boy an odd coin before he left, explaining that he was sorry he had to leave, but was late for work.

They looked down at the large gold coins in their hands and looked up at the ice cream shop. They both terribly wanted the ice cream, but knew that the money was far more important to keep.

"Well," said Harry as he closed his fist around the coin. "We might as well start heading back now. We can come back later now that we know where it is."

Andrew looked as if he wanted to protest at first, but then he thought about Mrs. Elmand and how worried she would get if they were out too late. "I suppose your right." He said, closing his own fist around his coin.

The pair made their way back to the bit of wall that they had come in through when they ran into a problem. They had no way of opening the barrier. They needed a wand.

After walking around the ally for some time, Harry and Andrew finally found a shop call Olivanders that sold wands. A sign in the window said "_Quality Wands, 7 Galleons Each"_. Neither Harry nor Andrew had any idea what a galleon was, but they guessed that the two gold coins they had would not be enough.

So, they decided to do a bit of begging. They watched as a tall blond couple walked by with a son who looked about Harry's age. They had on expensive looking robes and Harry thought, '_They look like they'll have some money to spare._'

Harry— unlike most of the children who would beg from anyone who would give them something—would only beg from people who looked to be wealthier. He knew people who struggled to get by were more willing to give money to a little orphan boy, but he also knew that accepting any money from them would be to make their struggles worse. He would only accept money if it looked as if the person wouldn't be affected by spareing some cash.

"Excuse me, sir!" Harry called out. He ran over to the tall blond man with Andrew following closely behind him.

The man sneered at him before asking rather rudely, "What do you want?"

"I'm sorry to bother you, sir, but my mother dropped us off here and forgot to give us bus money to get back home." Harry prayed that there were busses in the wizarding world. "Could you possibly spare some change?"

The man looked at them with suspicion, obviously detecting their lie. The woman next to him nudged his side and he reluctantly pulled out a small bronze coin and threw it at their feet. The woman rolled her eyes and said, "Lucius, really! You can give them more than that!" She reached into her purse and brought out leather pouch that jingled with coins. "Here you are, dears." She said kindly. She placed the entire bag of money in Harry's hands before walking off with her family.

"Really, Narcissa, you can be such a pushover." The tall man said to his wife as they were walking away.

As soon as the family was out of sight, Harry opened the bag and peered inside. There were dozens of the gold coins and a few silver and bronze ones too. Harry couldn't believe his luck! After adding their other two gold coins and the little bronze one from the ground, they made their way back to the wand shop.

They entered the shop and sat in a few chairs waiting for the store owner to finish up with another customer. They watched as the girl tried wand after wand. She would wave it once, and the man behind the counter would take it away muttering, "No… no, that's not it."

This went on for about ten more wands before the girl waved one that emitted colorful sparks. "Wonderful!" said the man. "That will be seven galleons, Ms. Granger."

The girl smiled and pulled out seven of the big gold coins. "Thanks, Mr. Olivander!" she said.

Once she had left the store, Harry and Andrew walked hesitantly up to the counter. Harry felt a small pressure in his mind and instinctively pulled Andrew closer to him while raising his protective shield. The pressure left and he lowered his guard slightly.

"Curious… very curious." The old man said.

"Sorry, but _what's_ curious?" Harry asked in a polite tone.

"That you were able to block my attempts to gain access to your mind; and not for your own sake, but for his." The man's gaze fell upon Andrew and Harry pulled the younger boy behind himself.

There was a heavy silence that was broken by Andrew. "Could we please have a wand, sir?" He asked in his excited voice.

"Of course, of course." The man muttered before going into the back of the shop and coming out with a dozen or so wand boxes.

He handed one to Harry. "Give it a wave," he said. Harry had just raised it up when the man snatched it back out of his hand muttering, "No, no, that's not the one." This went on for nearly half an hour before Harry began to get frustrated.

"Exactly how many of these am I going to try?" he asked in annoyance.

"Be patient, lad, for the wand chooses the wizard. It's not very clear why."

The mysterious voice of the man disturbed Harry, so he kept his mouth closed after that. After nearly an hour, Andrew had begun to fidget. Harry had gone through what must have been half the store before Olivander stopped and said to himself, "Hmm, I wonder."

He went back deep within the shelves and retrieved a very dusty old box. He opened it up and pulled out a wand. "Holly and Phoenix Feather, 11 inches." He passed it to Harry's outstretched hand.

Harry felt a warm feeling in his fingertips when he closed his hand around the wand. He gave it a small wave and brilliant bright sparks came out.

"Curious, very curious." The man said.

"Sir, what curious?" Harry asked again.

"Well, my boy, this wand is a rather special one. I remember every wand I've ever sold. The brother to this wand was owned by the most powerful dark wizard in recent history."

Harry looked at him in confusion. "How do wands become brothers?" he asked.

"Each wand is made of a different wood, length, and core. Inside of your wand is a phoenix feather. It just so happens that the Phoenix who donated a feather to make your wand donated another feather. Just one other." The man paused; his wide blue eyes bore down unto Harry. "Yew and Phoenix Feather, 13 ½ inches. While the Yew in his wand stands for poison, the Holly in yours stands for protection."

Harry looked down at the wand in his hand. What could it all mean? He shrugged it off for now and pulled out seven of the gold coins like the girl before him had. He paid and thanked the man before leavening the shop with Andrew.

"Wow, Harry! That was so cool!" Andrew said as he bounced up and down.

"Yeah," Harry said, a faint smile on his face as he stared at the wand in his hand. "Well, we'd better be getting back. We've been out long enough already and we don't want Mrs. Elmand to give us an extra dish duty."

Andrew pretended to shudder at the thought of extra chores making Harry laugh. "C'mon," Harry said dragging Andrew along to make him go faster. Soon they came to the wall they entered from and they realized they still had no idea how to open it. They looked from the wand to the wall, and then at each other. "What did that guy we come in with do?" Harry asked.

"I think he was tapping on it…" Andrew said. Harry shrugged and reached up with his wand to start tapping. Just before it hit the wall, began melting away. Harry pulled Andrew away from the entrance so they wouldn't be seen. They watched from a few feet away as a large family came by. Harry knew they must be a family as they all had matching bright red hair.

Harry turned his attention back to the wall, which was still open, and slipped through with Andrew following behind him. They walked quickly through the crowded pub and out into the streets of London on their way back to the orphanage.

* * *

Albus Dumbledore had been following Harry all day, waiting to step in and help him. He was surprised to realize, however, that Harry didn't need his or anyone's help.

He watched him from under the invisibility cloak as they looked for people in robes. He watched as they followed an Auror, and then Harry's amazing display of defensive magic. He watched them cleverly get money to buy a wand and then saw as they snuck out of the Ally after another family entered.

He was proud of little Harry. He had proven to be highly independent, protective of innocents, powerful magically, brave in the face of bullies, cunning when he needed to be, smart and resourceful. Albus wondered where he would be sorted when it came time for school to start.

Dumbledore apparated away confident that Harry Potter could handle himself.

* * *

-Annoying Note-

The votes for where to sort Harry are as follows:

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